Matthew Slotover

It was a moment, for sure.

Yeah, I mean, that was all down to Carl, really.

So this was supposed to be an internet company because it was founded in 2000.

And we thought, how is the internet going to change art?

Well, art's a physical thing.

You sort of physically need to see it and own it.

And it's, are people going to buy it online?

Are people going to buy expensive works online?

At the time, we didn't think so, we thought.

But maybe inexpensive works by well-known artists.

And maybe what the internet could do is...

enable the distribution of larger volumes at lower costs so an addition used to be an addition of 30 at 3 000 pounds so we did additions of 300 at 300 pounds so it was more but cheaper by well-known artists so the first lot were tracy em and gary hume christopher wool peter doig elizabeth payton

Some of him were not, like Peter Toys didn't sell, like he wasn't so well known at the time and that was, like we sold a hundred of Gary's on the first day and we sold five of Peter's in the first year.

I mean, the Doigs, how long did they take to sell?

Someone said, I know Peter Doig, he did that canoe image.

And I was like, that is the image you know of Peter Doig.

Yeah, the Count Tradition's print.

There's a painting as well, but anyway.

I mean, it's like any founders, you know, you have the idea, you think it's going to be great.

And then you've got to actually do it.